Are You STILL Lubricating Your Bike Chain Incorrectly?

Summary

This video covers common mistakes in bike chain lubrication and offers advice on how to avoid them. It explains the importance of shaking lubricants, allowing dry lube time to evaporate, and cleaning chains regularly, especially when using wet lube, which tends to attract dirt. The video emphasizes the need to avoid over-lubricating or applying lube on dirty chains, which can accelerate drivetrain wear. Proper lubrication involves cleaning the chain, applying the lube to individual rollers, and wiping off excess. Different lubes have different properties, so it's essential to choose the right one and follow manufacturer recommendations.

Takeaways

• 🚲 Always shake your chain lubricant before use, as it helps mix the wax (for dry lube) or oil (for wet lube) with the liquid carrier.
• ⌛ Dry lube requires time to evaporate after application, so avoid applying it right before a ride to prevent attracting dust.
• 🌧️ Wet lube, being oil-based, doesn't need time to dry and can be used right away. It's more water-resistant but attracts more dirt.
• 🧼 Clean your chain regularly if using wet lube, as it picks up dirt and can create a grinding paste that damages your drivetrain.
• 🚿 Never apply lubricant to a dirty chain. Doing so traps dirt, creating a grinding effect that wears down the drivetrain.
• 🆕 Clean new chains before installation to remove factory grease, which attracts dirt and grime, leading to a buildup of black gunk.
• 🔧 Different lubricants behave differently with dirt, so if you notice excessive dirt buildup, consider switching to a higher-quality lube.
• 🎯 Focus lubrication on the chain rollers (the moving parts), not the outer chain links, as excess lube on the outside will attract dirt.
• 💧 Use minimal lube, applying only one drop per roller, then wipe off any excess to prevent attracting dirt.
• ✅ The best practice for chain lubrication: start with a clean chain, apply lube to individual rollers, and follow manufacturer recommendations for drying time if using dry lube.

Q & A

What is the main issue with not shaking your chain lubricant before use?

If you don't shake the lubricant, the wax and the liquid carrier may not mix properly, causing you to apply only the carrier to your chain without the lubricating wax, which diminishes the lubricant's effectiveness.

Why shouldn't you apply dry lube right before a bike ride?

Dry lube needs time for the liquid carrier to evaporate, leaving the lubricating wax on the chain. If applied right before a ride, the liquid can gather dust and dirt, reducing its effectiveness in protecting the chain.

How is wet lube different from dry lube in terms of application?

Wet lube is oil-based and doesn’t require drying time like dry lube. You can apply it and ride immediately, and it also offers better water resistance for wet conditions.

What is a common mistake when using wet lube?

A common mistake is not cleaning the chain often enough. Wet lube can attract dirt, grit, and mud, which can create a grinding paste that wears down the drivetrain if not cleaned regularly.

Why is it important to apply lubricant to a clean chain?

Applying lubricant to a dirty chain can trap dust and dirt, creating a grinding paste that accelerates drivetrain wear. A clean chain ensures the lubricant can properly protect the chain.

Why should you clean a new chain before applying lubricant?

New chains often come with factory grease, which protects the chain but also attracts dirt and grime. Cleaning this grease off before applying your preferred lubricant prevents dirt buildup.

What could cause black gunk buildup on a chain, and how can you prevent it?

Black gunk buildup could be caused by not cleaning the chain frequently enough or using low-quality lubricant that attracts dirt. Regular cleaning and using a high-quality lube can prevent this issue.

Is it necessary to lubricate the outside of the chain?

No, only the rollers of the chain need lubrication. Excess lubricant on the outside of the chain should be wiped off to prevent it from attracting dirt and dust.

How should you apply lubricant to each roller of the chain?

Shake the lubricant well, apply one drop to each roller of the chain while turning the crank backward, and make sure to wipe off any excess lubricant from the outer chain plates.

How often should you check and relubricate your chain?

You should regularly check your chain to see if it needs cleaning or relubrication. If the chain becomes dirty, clean it and reapply lubricant to ensure smooth operation.

Outlines

00:00

🚴 Common Mistakes When Lubricating Your Bike Chain

The speaker highlights common mistakes cyclists make when lubricating their bike chains. While many people follow correct lubrication practices, errors such as not shaking the lubricant properly, applying it just before a ride, or not allowing dry lube to evaporate can reduce its effectiveness. For dry lube, the wax needs time to evaporate, or it can attract dust, reducing chain protection. Wet lube is oil-based and doesn't need evaporation time, but can collect dirt if not cleaned regularly, causing drivetrain wear.

05:01

⚙️ Why Cleaning Your Chain Before Lubricating is Crucial

Applying lubricant to a dirty chain is a common but harmful practice. Lubricating over dirt encapsulates debris, creating a grinding paste that accelerates wear on your drivetrain. Even new chains need cleaning because they come coated in factory grease, which can accumulate grime. Using a degreaser is necessary before applying high-quality lubricants, ensuring better performance and easier cleaning in the future.

Keywords

💡Dry Lube

Dry lube is a wax-based lubricant used on bike chains to reduce friction. In the video, it is explained that dry lube needs time to dry after being applied, as the wax is suspended in a liquid carrier that needs to evaporate. Applying dry lube just before a ride can cause the chain to gather dust, reducing its effectiveness.

💡Wet Lube

Wet lube is an oil-based lubricant that provides longer-lasting lubrication and water resistance. The video highlights that wet lube is ideal for foul weather due to its water-repellent properties but needs frequent chain cleaning to prevent dirt buildup. Applying wet lube without cleaning the chain can lead to the formation of a grinding paste that damages the drivetrain.

💡Carrier

A carrier is the liquid component in which the lubricating substance (wax or oil) is suspended. In the case of dry lube, the carrier evaporates, leaving behind the wax to protect the chain. The video emphasizes the importance of shaking the lubricant bottle to mix the carrier with the wax before applying it to the chain.

💡Evaporation

Evaporation refers to the process where the liquid carrier in dry lube evaporates, leaving the protective wax on the chain. The video points out that dry lube must be given time to evaporate before a bike ride, or the liquid may collect dust and counteract the lubricant's purpose.

💡Factory Grease

Factory grease is a protective coating applied to new bike chains during manufacturing. While it prevents corrosion, the video explains that it also attracts dirt, leading to black gunk buildup. The speaker advises using a degreaser to remove factory grease before applying high-quality chain lube.

💡Grinding Paste

A grinding paste is a harmful mixture of dirt and lubricant that forms on bike chains and drivetrains. In the video, this is described as a result of over-lubricating a dirty chain, which causes accelerated wear on the drivetrain. Cleaning the chain regularly is essential to avoid this issue.

💡Degreaser

A degreaser is a cleaning solution used to remove grease, oil, and dirt from bike chains and drivetrains. The video recommends using a degreaser to clean both new chains with factory grease and chains that have accumulated dirt over time. This prepares the chain for fresh lubrication and ensures optimal performance.

💡Chain Rollers

Chain rollers are the small cylindrical parts of a bike chain that move as the chain flexes over the gears. The video emphasizes that lubrication should be applied directly to these rollers since they are the moving components that require friction reduction, rather than lubricating the outer parts of the chain.

💡Over-application

Over-application refers to the excessive use of chain lubricant, which can lead to problems like dirt buildup. In the video, the speaker advises against applying too much lube or lubricating a dirty chain, as it can create a grinding paste that accelerates wear on the drivetrain.

💡Drivetrain

The drivetrain is the system of components on a bike that transfers power from the rider's pedaling to the wheels, including the chain, cassette, and chainrings. The video focuses on how proper lubrication and cleaning of the chain can extend the life of the drivetrain by preventing wear caused by dirt and friction.

Highlights

Common mistakes in lubricating a bike chain that can reduce its effectiveness.

Dry lube is wax-based and suspended in a liquid carrier, requiring a good shake before use.

Applying dry lube right before a ride can cause it to gather dust since the carrier liquid needs time to evaporate.

Wet lube, being oil-based, doesn't need to dry, so it can be used immediately after application.

Wet lube lasts longer and is water-repellent but can pick up dirt, requiring frequent cleaning of the chain.

A common mistake is applying lube to a dirty chain, which can trap dirt and cause damage to the drivetrain.

New chains come with factory grease, which protects the chain but attracts grime, so it should be cleaned before applying lubricant.

If your drivetrain keeps producing black gunk, you may not be cleaning it enough, or you could be using low-quality lube.

It's best to apply one drop of lube to each roller in the chain, as these are the parts that need lubrication.

Excess lube should be wiped off the outer chain plates to avoid attracting dirt.

Lube should only be applied to the chain, not to the cassette, chainrings, or pulley wheels.

For dry lube, check the manufacturer's recommendations for drying time, which is typically overnight.

Wet lube allows you to ride immediately after application but still requires regular cleaning.

For best results, clean and degrease your chain before each lubrication to avoid encapsulating dirt.

Monitor your chain's condition, re-lubricate as needed, and clean it when dirty to maintain optimal performance.

Transcripts

we have done a number of chain

lubricating videos over the years but

advice changes and soda products and to

be honest I've seen people correctly

lubricate their bike but sometimes there

are common mistakes that crop up that

means they're not getting the best from

their actions so I'm going to go over

those mistakes with you today so that

hopefully you can avoid them in the

[Music]

future dry lube and often all weather

Lube is largely waxed based now the wax

is what's lubricating your chain but in

order for it to be in a liquid form it

needs to be suspended in a liquid

carrier so the first mistake I see being

made is people not shaking their

lubricant because if it's not mixed in

then you might just be applying carrier

to your chain and none of the wax the

next mistake I see being made with dry

lube is people applying it to the chain

immediately before a bike ride now the

problem with this is that dry lube needs

time to evaporate as we discussed the

wax is suspended in a carrier which

means that once you apply it it needs

time for that carrier to evaporate and

leave the wax behind now if you go out

and ride then it means there's this

liquid on your chain that may gather

dust and therefore work against what

your Lube is trying to do in protect

protecting your chain from that dust now

wet Lube is often oilbased and this will

need a good shake when you apply it as

well but because it's oilbased you won't

have to wait for it to dry out when you

apply it so you can apply it and go

straight away and that's great and also

wet Lube being oilbased means it'll last

a little longer than dry and it will be

highly water repellent as well so it's

great for foul weather however the

common mistake I see being made with wet

Lube is people not paying attention to

how often you need to clean your chain

with this being oilbased it will pick up

dirt and grit and mud and that can

create a bit of a grinding paste in your

drivetrain which if you don't clean it

often enough it will wear out your

drivetrain sooner so stay on top of

cleaning your chain if you're using wet

Lube regularly and don't over apply or

apply onto dirty chain I'll explain why

in a minute chain lubing maintenance is

really simple all you have to do is

clean your chain lubricate it and if it

gets dirty you repeat the process but I

see this mistake being made so often and

that is people lubricating onto a dirty

chain now the problem with this is that

the lube should be protecting your chain

from wearing out quickly but if it's

Gathering dirt and dust and your lubric

ating over that you could be

encapsulating that dirt and dust and

creating a grinding Pace that will wear

out your drivetrain sooner than you had

hoped so what you need to do is make

sure your chain is clean every time it

gets dirty and if you're buying a new

chain while it looks clean it does

actually still need cleaning before

putting on your bike the problem with a

new chain is that usually comes lined in

Factory grease and this grease is really

good at protecting the chain but it's

also really good at picking up dirt and

grime and the problem with that is that

often a black Gunk builds up on the

chain and the drive train and this will

need a strong Degreaser to remove it so

ideally you want to degrease this chain

before you put it on your bike so that

you can use a high quality lubricant

that can be removed by just using a bike

cleaner I think it's important to say

that not all Lube is made equally there

are different formulas and even

different oils they're inside things

like wet lube and they will behave

differently with dirt so if you have a

drivetrain that keeps creating that

black Gunk that we talked about earlier

chances are one of two things that's

happening here you're not cleaning your

bike often enough or you have a poor

quality Lube that is picking up that

dirt too easily and perhaps it's a good

idea to try something different when

that lube runs out now you don't need to

be a total nerd like me and apply one

tiny drop to one roller at a time but it

does help to do this method because it's

only the rollers that we want to

lubricate those are the moving parts we

don't need to lubricate the outside of

the chain indeed if you have lubricant

on the outside of the chain we should be

removing that anyway so that it doesn't

pick up dirt and dust along the way now

you can lubricate your chain and work

the crank backwards in order to speed up

the process but don't keep going around

and around because you'll just be

wasting product on that chain but if you

were in a rush and you did use this

method give it a minute to let the lube

sink into the rollers and then wipe off

the excess particularly from the outside

plates because otherwise you just going

to be gathering mud and dirt again and

also you don't need to be using your

Lube to lubricate anything other than

the chain you don't need to lubricate

the pulley or the cassette or the chain

ring for that matter so let's finalize

with the absolute best practice for

lubricating your chain first you want to

start with an absolutely clean chain to

make sure there's no dirt on there

already ideally degreased if you have it

then you need to find a point of

reference on your chain I like to use a

quick link if I have one and I'll Circle

that to the bottom of my bike and what I

will do is then get my lube make sure

it's really well shaken up and then I

will apply one drop to each individual

roller and keep going along the chain

and until I meet that link again and

that way I will know that every single

roller in that chain is lubricated and

then if I've used a dry lube I will

check the manufacturer spec to find out

how long it takes for that to dry with

Petes their ideal advice is to apply the

lube the night before and let it dry

overnight uh but if you have wet Lube

chances are you can just get riding

straight away and the next thing I will

do is to keep checking that chain to see

if it needs any

relubrication later along the way or if

it needs cleaning because if it's dirty

clean it and repeat anyway hopefully

that has been useful to you but let me

know down in the comments below if you

have any advice for our fellow gmbb and

Tech followers